Caution - Unethical Seller

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Doc Hoy

New member
About a week ago I won an auction on Gunbroker for some parts for a Colt 1851 Navy. It was a no-reserve auction and my bid was high and was above the minimum required bid.

When I made contact with the seller to complete the auction, he informed me that he had made a mistake on the auction and did not intend to accept payment or mail the parts. The bid was 13.56 for a trigger guard, back strap and grip in very used condition. Value of the parts new from DGW is 54.85. I was willing to pay up to 22.00 but won the auction for 13.56. He subsequently relisted the parts in a reserve price auction which was not won for a maximum bit of 45.00 (from some fool who does not know that for ten bucks more he can get new parts.)

The seller has an A+ rating with eighteen feedbacks. Seventeen of his feedbacks are very positive. One of them (mine) is an "F". I have sent two emails trying to get him to explain which Gunbroker policy permits him to decline to complete this auction but he has not responded.

If anyone responds to this post asking for more specifics I will be glad to supply the handle of the seller.

Gunbroker's policy is that they do not get involved.
 
Yup!

SG,

Seller's Gunbroker handle is trott2holland.

Mike,

Yes....I am a little hesitant because while, to me this is cut and dried, to others with different sentiments I might be off base. So I run the risk that no one sees it as I do. (Wouldn't be the first time)

I don't mind disagreement but I wanted to be certain before I put a name out there. I only have six feedbacks of GB so someone with more experience could say something like, "Oh, That happens all of the time. Nobody pays attention to the rules."

At this point, I have told the guy, who works out of North Carolina, that if a couple bucks is worth more than his integrity, nothing I could say would make a difference.

I hope he reads this forum.
 
And another thing.....

I am not resting simply on Gunbroker rules or policy. To me this is a matter of integrity.

My skin is about as thick a pine bark, but one way to get to me quick is to assault my integrity. So when someone breaks their word (and not Gunbroker's rules) I get my nose out of joint.

Take responsibility for mistakes, is what I would say. Never having made a mistake, personally I can't speak from experience, but it seems like the right way to do business.
 
Yes....I am a little hesitant because while, to me this is cut and dried, to others with different sentiments I might be off base. So I run the risk that no one sees it as I do. (Wouldn't be the first time)
Click to expand...

I see this the way that you do: a deal is a deal. The auctions run long enough for the seller to realize that he's made a mistake and end it early - which is a whole 'nother story than letting it run its course and refusing to complete the deal.

Gunbroker, unfortunately, makes this sort of thing easy because a seller can just report that he wasn't paid for the deal and he doesn't pay any commission. In fact, the whole "no sale, no commission" deal encourages "auctions" that aren't auctions in fact - they're just fixed price sales due to their reserve or high starting price. There's a whole lot of chaff to sort through to get to the wheat, so to speak.

I've bought a few things through Gunbroker, but it's just too much of a bother to wade through all the overpriced stuff to find a decent price.
 
He was taking the High Road I believe. Having said that and seeing as several are wanting to know his identity, please do post it for all to see. I don't personally think that will be out of line and it may save others from this sort of behavior. I am also disappointed in gunbroker in regards to how they are (not) handling this!
 
Yup!

HC,

I can't say that I have ever gotten a great deal on GB. Some good ones but you are right. GB seems to be going by the way of eBay. Pretty soon they will ban the sale of firearms on Gunbroker.:D

You are correct on your second point too. This was a long auction. Trott had plenty of time to inform all of the bidders that a mistake had been made. I would have accepted that.
 
Doc Hoy said:
Gunbroker's policy is that they do not get involved.
Click to expand...
They get involved with nonpaying bidders! If you ask me Gunbroker is being as unethical in this matter as the seller! If "your bid is your contract" why is putting you item up for a no reserve auction not a contract?
 
Looking at it, it seems the day after he opened the auction he added that "This is a buy it now only auction"

I guess he listed it wrong and wanted a reserve or to make the first bid the same as the "buy it now"

He really should have contacted you and let you know, or at least pulled the auction.

That said, if I were the seller I would have simply sold it at that price and learned from my mistake.

Anything else in this case is just a lack of integrity.

Although there can be a situation where I could see pulling it is a really gross mistake was made, say if you listed a $10,000 gun and put a buy it now of one cent
 
Kadmos

All good and valid points.

I am not aware of the designation "Buy it now only". Buy it now for sixty bucks with an opening bid of sixty bucks would have covered it. But as you say....not after the fact.

Tnx,
 
Doc - you did the right thing by "outing" this guy. If he screwed up on his listing, he should have looked at it and fixed it when he posted it. To not carry through on the transaction is just plain "tacky" and lacks any integrity whatsoever. If you had the winning bid and abided by the terms of the auction, which you did, he should honor the sale. As a seller on eBay for years, you learn that you can't please everyone - so be it, that's human nature. But, if I post an auction and screw up or the winning bid is not what I'd like it to be . . . well, that's my problem. The bidder bid in good faith and I in return, am going to honor his winning bid and deliver the goods. I've never bought anything off of GunBroker but I would think that you'd have the recourse of registering a complaint with GunBroker about the transaction (beyond justleaving feedback). If they are like other auction sites, they WANT to know about sellers (and buyers) who are breaking the rules as it is a protection of their reputation as well. It's too bad that this had to happen but I'd steer clear of his auctions in the future if this is how he does business. Don't let it give you a bad taste in your mouth though as there are certainly a lot of other sellers who treat their customers with honesty. All in all, by your posting your bid you entered into a contract with him to purchase the item up to your maximum bid amount and he in turn, by posting the auction and accepting the bid, contracted to sell it to you. Good luck and may this be the only problem you ever run into on the auction sites. Unfortunately, he changed his mind and figured he ought to have "near new" price for the items . . . . which aren't worth that. Have a good one and thanks for posting your thread so others will know. :)
 
Tough break Doc, but

always remember that GB is funded by fees from the seller. It is in GBs best interest to look out for the seller before the buyer. Even if it means losing that buyer for good. I really think that GB believes the buyer will eventually come back.

The site quickly became a national market for dealers, many of whom do a volume business on there.

I do not expect to get a great deal on it, but I can get what I WANT, usually tomorrow.

I have bought quite a few things off there and so far so good. No ripoffs.

Most of the reserve auctions are nothing more than 'fishing trips'.

My rant be done, JT
 
Perhaps the dude really meant it to be a Buy-It-Now auction to begin with but why then did he start bidding off at $0.01??????? He should have immediately ended the auction and apologized.

In the end I think he just was disappointed he couldn't get at least $60 and so he decided to screw over the bidders. IMHO, he doesn't have proper ethics. I doubt he would have been so sympathetic if someone screwed him like he has screwed others.
 
I agree with your complaint entirely. You won the auction at the terms he set. He should stand by his part of the agreement.

I once made a deal for a large automotive part I was selling. I wound up loosing money on it due to the shipping costs. Still went through with it.
 
Some Gunbroker ads will state that the item is subject to prior local sale, so there's the potential for a time lag between the local sale being made and the item being bid on.
Once the auction is bid on, the Gunbroker program doesn't allow the terms to be changed or the auction to be ended early.
This ad doesn't even say which company made the grip frame. :rolleyes:

Someone once bid and became the winner of one of my inexpensive BP gun auctions on Gunbroker.
After I sent the payment info., the winning account holder contacts me and says that his underage son used his password and bid without his permission.
He said that he had changed his password afterward so that it wouldn't happen again.
He paid me the auction fee and asked me not to give him negative feedback.
I have 3 boys so I understood how that could have happened.
So I didn't report it and there was no harm done.
 
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A few years ago I used to sell a lot of vintage stereo equipment on Ebay, at one time I was a power seller. I made a few mistakes here and there but I always owned up and ate my losses. The feedback I had on Ebay showed this. I recently sold a few items on Gunbroker thinning out some gun items and even though one item did not do as well as I had wanted and shipping cost me more than I charged, I honored the transactions. It just makes me mad when people do as Doc Hoy described and I am glad he exposed him as a dishonest seller.
 
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